Asian Asbestos Conference 2009

Concluding Thoughts

From the first moments of AAC 2009, the plight of Asia's
asbestos victims took center stage. Where academic initiatives
were discussed, attention focused on how the research
could be of practical assistance to the injured; where asbestos
abatement techniques were considered, the focus was
on how they could be used to minimize hazardous exposures.
In the participatory atmosphere created by the conference
organizers, experienced Japanese and Korean
researchers interacted with Indonesian colleagues relatively
new to the asbestos issue and grass-roots members
from China with no background on asbestos whatsoever.
Everyone had something vital to contribute and all opinions
and experiences were given the respect they deserved.
A poignant message from Japanese asbestos victims transmitted
during the welcome dinner (April 25) set the tone
for much of what was to follow; expressing sadness at the
damage done, they urged AAC 2009 delegates to work together
to end decades of asbestos slaughter. The faces of
those affected in Japan and the faces of those they left behind
were a salient reminder of the humanity which underpins
everything the ban asbestos campaign stands for.*
The presence in Hong Kong of victims' representatives
from so many countries reminded delegates that while the
faces change, the heartbreak and deprivation caused by asbestos
remains the same.

Since the Asian Asbestos Conference 2006 took place in
Bangkok, the regional movement has been reinvigorated
by an influx of members from more countries and sectors
of civil society. The increasing information exchange and
communication across subject disciplines and national borders
has led to more joint initiatives. The energy and new
skills brought to the movement by younger members has
complimented the experience and knowledge of those not
quite so young; working side by side towards common
goals they have made substantial progress in recent years
regarding the banning of asbestos and the empowering of
victims in Asia. Some highlights reported to the conference
include:

Japan: victims continue to keep asbestos high on the
national agenda through sustained political pressure,
medical researchers and trade unionists are working together
to delineate a practical approach to assist atrisk
groups and new initiatives have been launched to
support retired workers with asbestos-related diseases;

Korea: campaigners have mobilized civil society
around multiple asbestos issues, such as occupational injuries, environmental pollution and contamination
of consumer products and forced the government to
implement a national ban and take steps to identify
victims;

The Philippines: labor federations are progressing a
ban asbestos strategy which relies on political lobbying,
building relationships with government agencies
and the use of technology to spread awareness of the
asbestos hazard;

India: committed doctors, in cooperation with community
activists, have embarked on programs to
identify the injured; new outreach programs have
been launched in mining and industrial areas to raise
asbestos awareness; initial efforts by trade unionists
to organize ship-breaking workers are showing positive
results;

Indonesia: community activists, in collaboration with
Japanese and Korean colleagues, have documented
the transfer of hazardous asbestos technology to Indonesia
and are quantifying the asbestos risks to workers
and local people in Cibinong;

Hong Kong: a campaign by asbestos sufferers, family
members and trade unionists resulted in the government
adding mesothelioma to a list of compensated
illnesses; projects to assist victims are providing
much needed support; efforts to publicize the potential
hazards of asbestos products in Hong Kong public
housing continue;

China: research has revealed that people working in
or living near chrysotile-using factories on the mainland
are at high risk of contracting cancer; positive
results have been reported by a company developing
asbestos-free building materials;

Pakistan: At the second meeting of the National Technical
Advisory Committee on Chemicals (April,
2009), a breakthrough was made with the decision to
include all types of asbestos on a list of hazardous materials;

Malaysia: A national trade union center has embarked
upon a program of training, publicity and education to
progress its goal of a comprehensive ban on asbestos
use;

Sri Lanka: a new law, which will come into force in
2009, will list the asbestos industry as "hazardous,"
mandate the reporting of asbestos-related illness and
introduce stringent workplace controls in all sectors.

The globalized asbestos industry, which has
brought death to diverse populations across Asia,
has benefited from the isolation of dying
individuals and their inability to turn local anger
into action.

The work of AAC 2009 did not end when delegates left
Hong Kong. Only weeks after this major event took place,
a story which underlined the ubiquity of the region's challenges
made headline news in South Korea. The article entitled
The Deadly Air they Breathed108 described the after-effects of asbestos mining and processing in
Gwangcheon and Busan. As elsewhere, it is not just
former miners and factory workers who are suffering;
people who lived near a train station through which asbestos
cargo was transported have also contracted asbestosis.
In Busan alone as many as 440,000 people could be affected
by asbestos fallout from manufacturing operations
which took place within six miles of where they lived. As
local governments and national agencies struggle to come
to terms with the escalating public health disaster, victims
are demanding action. Farmer Jung Ju-yol, a former miner
who is now suffering from an asbestos disease, is also a
part-time campaigner who spends his own money to bring
villagers to meetings. "We need to soon stage our own
protest or something…We might even need to get together
with the Busan folks at some point," he told a journalist.

Despite the progress which is being made, Asian asbestos
consumption continues to endanger millions of lives. Numerous
conference delegates spoke of low levels of occupational,
public and professional asbestos awareness, the
disenfranchisement of asbestos victims, an almost total
lack of medical and diagnostic capacity, control of national
agendas by industry stakeholders and the prioritization
of economic development over health and safety issues.
As was so clearly illustrated during the asbestos victims'
panel, the mobilization of the injured is key to effecting
change in national asbestos policy. The globalized asbestos
industry, which has brought death to diverse populations
across Asia, has benefited from the isolation of
dying individuals and their inability to turn local anger into
action. The birth of A-BAN means that Asian victims
will no longer be alone; as part of a regional campaigning
network they will have the information and critical mass
to expose the polluters, demand public recognition of their
injuries and force governments to provide the medical
care and financial support they need. The formation of ABAN
will serve as an enduring legacy of AAC 2009 and
will ensure that the movement to ban asbestos will continue
to spread throughout Asia.